The province of Punjab comprising of eight administrative divisions extends over an area of 205,346 sq. km (97,192 miles).
According to the preliminary results of the 1998 Census, the population of the province stands at 71.5 million (about 55% of the total population of Pakistan) compared with 47.12 million of 1981 population census figures. Population density in the province is 348 persons per sq. km.
Though not the largest area-wise, the Punjab is most populous of the four provinces and comparatively developed one. It is considered to be nerve center of Pakistan besides being known as its "Cultural Capital". Its people are hard working, large-hearted and sincere as well as warm-hearted. The poet, Allama Iqbal who dreamt of Pakistan, was born in this province (Sialkot District) and lies buried in the capital city of Lahore.
Punjab is known for a great variety of arts and crafts - from the blue tiles of Multan to the woodwork of Chiniot - as well as industrial units. It is land of manly games, of sturdy pehalwans (wrestlers), of robust cattle and dairy farms, of folklore and love legends and haunting music.
Punjab consists mostly of plains north and south of the ancient Salt Range, which runs from east to west. The Punjab can be divided into five major physical regions, such as, (I) Northern Mountains, (II) South-West Mountains, (III) Pothwar Plateau, (IV) the Upper Indus Plain and (V) The Deserts.
In the north, there are the outer ranges of the Himalayas: the Murree and Kahuta hills In the north and the Pubbi hills of Gujrat in the South.
In the southwest, there are the hills of the Sulaiman Range which, running from north to south in the D.G. Khan Division, are not higher than 1,200 meters and are dry and barren. The area across the Indus is also called "Derajat".
The Pothwar Plateau (height 305 to 610 meters) has an area of 12,944 sq. km and is bounded by river Jhelum in the east and by Indus in the west. Covering virtually the whole of Rawalpindi Division, it extends to the northern slope of Kala Chitta Range and Margalla Hills and to the Salt Range in the south. It has deep ravines and slopes from northeast to southeast, a direction followed by Soan River. The Pothwar is the earliest proven oil-bearing region, now having most of the country's oilfields and has the country's first and the oldest oil refinery in Rawalpindi.
The Upper Indus Plain covering Lahore, Multan, Gujranwala and Faisalabad Divisions and large parts of Sargodha, D.G. Khan and Bahawalpur Divisions, is a feature-less terrain. With an average gradient of 19 c.m. to one c.m., it slopes gently to southeast.
To the southwest of Sutlej, there is a vast desert of about 2,592 million hectares of land covering about two-thirds of the entire Bahalwalpur Division, divided into 'smaller' and 'greater' Cholistan, consisting of saline alluvial land with low dunes, ridges and depressions.
Places of historical, cultural, architectural and other interests such as Badshahi Masjid, Lahore Fort, Moghul Emperor Jahangir and Nur Jehan's mausoleums, Attock and Rohtas Forts, For Munro, Kallar Kahar Salt Lake, Lal Sunehra Park, Bahawalpur, Ghulshan-e-Iqbal, picturesque Shalimar Gardens, Minar-e-Pakistan, Changa Manga Forest, Ayub National Park, Hiran Minar, maza of poet-philosopher Allam Mohammad Iqbal, Mazars of well-known saints such as Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh, Hazrat Mianmir Sahib, Baba Bulley Shah, Hazrat Masood Ganj Shakkar and Hazrat Bahauddin Zakariya, are spread all over the province.
Punjab's economy is mainly agricultural, although industry makes a substantial contribution. The total geographic and reported areas are 20.66 and 16.30 million hectares respectively. 11.35 million hectares of the reported areas are under cultivation while 0.43 million hectares are under forests. Punjab commands one the largest canal irrigation systems of the world; 41.3 per cent of total cultivable land is irrigated solely by canals, while another 41.1 per cent by canal tubewells.
The Capital of Punjab, Lahore, has been the seat of learning and power for centuries. Situated on the left bank of the River Ravi, the city has the largest number of well-preserved monuments of architectural and historical value. It was in this city that the famous Pakistan Resolution was passed on March 23, 1940. To perpetuate the memory of the occasion, a tall and impressive tower, Minar-I-Pakistan, has been built in the city. Lahore has the distinction of playing host to the world's largest gathering of Muslim rulers - the Second Islamic Summit - in the February of 1974 and to commemorate the event, a modern obelisk and a museum have been built.
Lahore is known as the city of gardens. It is an ancient town, rich in historical monuments, including some of the finest Muslim architecture - the Badshahi Mosque of Emperor Aurangzeb, the Shalimar Gardens of Emperor Shah Jehan, Emperor Jehangir's Mausoleum, and the Royal For of Emperor Akbar with its fabulous Hall of Mirrors. The other historical places in the city worth seeing are: the Mosque and Baradari of Wazir Khan built in 1634 AD by a Minister/Viceroy in Emeperor Shah Jehan's time bearing the title Wazir Khan; the tomb of Anarkali, the Hazuri Bagh (walled garden); the Mosque of Dai Anga, the Chauburjee, Kamran's Baradari and the Museum which houses, among other antiques, the world famous statue of fasting Buddha.
Lying 275 km north of Lahore, Rawalpindi is fast developing into a large city. It has an army museum, a number of good hotels and restaurants and the sprawling Ayub National Park. Chaklala near Rawalpindi is an international airport. Rawalpindi is the staging post for numerous holiday spots and hill resorts of the north such as Murre, Nathiagali, Ayubia, Abbottabad, Swat, Gilgit, Hunza, Skardu, Chitral and the Khunjrab (16,000 ft. above sea level), Pass that marks the Pak-Chinese border on the famous historic Silk Route.
Some 35 km northwest of Rawalpindi, on the way to Peshawar, lies Taxila, famous for its archaeological sites dating back to the 7th century B.C. The city flourished for a thousand years and was renowned as a center of Ghandhara art, architecture and sculpture, learning and religion in the Buddhist period.
About 64 km from Rawalpindi, at an altitude of 2,286 meters, is Murree where lofty peaks tower above green pine-covered slopes. It is one of the most popular summer resorts in Pakistan.
The various Gallis such as Nathiagali are quiet little hill resorts northwest of Murree and there is a motorable road running through all of them. Murree and Gallis offer horse riding, golf, chair lifts and pine-sheded walks galore alongside magnificent vistas of the plains and snow-capped peaks.
A major center of the Indus Valley Civilization was Harappa whose ruins lie 35 km southwest of Sahiwal (about 250 km from Lahore). Several cemeteries, have been excavated which confirm that the Indus Valley people buried their dead, many of them wearing finger-rings, necklaces of steatite beads, anklets of paste beads, ear-rings and shell bangles. Copper mirrors, antimony rods, shell spoons and vessels and urns of various shapes and sizes lay in the graves. Some of the female skeletons had anklets of tiny beads and girdles studded with semi-precious stones. Excavations show evidence of pre-Harappa materials having strong affinity with Kot Deji culture (in upper Sind province).
Hiran Minar is an interesting and popular tourist resort, located some 10 km northeast of Sheikhupura city (about 50 km from Lahore).The spot where today stands the 103 feet high Hiran Minar was a favorite hunting ground of Emperor Jehangir. Here in memory of his favorite antelope named "Hansraj" he constructed a huge water tank fed from distant River Ravi through an intricate but scientific feeding system.
In the city of Sheikhupura itself stands the imposing fort constructed by Emperor Jehangir after founding the city of Sheikhupura. In the fort, there are numerous beautiful fresco paintings belonging to the Sikh period of history (1799-1849).
The local Muslim traditions of Punjab were greatly influenced by the works of Central Asian and Persian artists of the early Mughal period. Persian miniatures were the models of some of the well-known artists like Abdur Rehman Chughta, with a style of his own, and Haji Mohammad Sharif. Both the masters have left behind a large treasure. Among the modern artists, Shakir Ali's name stands out. A museum has been built in his memory.
In calligraphy, a great heritage of Muslim art, Lahore's Agha Mirza Imam Verdy, gave new dimensions to this art. Equally renowned Sufu Abdul Majid (Perveen Raqqm) who changed the round form of letters to elegant ovals followed him. Calligraphy is being revived and is getting popular.
In the Graphic Arts, the Punjab artists have done a considerable amount of work. Representational paintings and landscapes continue to be produced side by side with more complex modern trends. The main art centers in the province are; National College of Art, Fine Arts Department of the Punjab University and the Art Gallery, all locate at Lahore.
Lahore is also the center of hand-made carpets - a happy blend from Iran and Turkistan. Since ancient times the weavers of the region have produced colorful fabrics of silk and cotton. In spite of the existence of modern textile mills, the hand woven cottons like Khaddar of Kamalia, are still popular. The cloth woven on handlooms in either block printed or beautifully embroidered. In the Northern Areas, even woolen cloth is hand-woven. Multan is famous for beautiful hand-woven bed covers.
The potter at his wheel is a common sight in every village, uninfluenced by modern glamour. Bahawalpur, Rawalpindi, Gujrat and places around also produce colorful pottery, painted after firing. The blue glazed pottery of Multan dates back to the 13th century with obvious traces for woodwork. Chiniot is also known for brass and iron inlay. Copper and brass work is done within the walled city of Lahore.
The magnificent edifices dotting this land of ancient civilizations, in the form of forts, palaces, gardens, mosques and mausoleums, are eloquent reminders of the great tradition in Muslim architecture. The inscriptions on the mausoleum of Shah Rukn-I-Alam (Multan) on bricks and tiles are outstanding specimens of architectural calligraphy which shows a deep Seljuk influence. The earliest existing building in South Asia which is replete with enameled tilework, is the tomb of Shah Yusuf Gardezi at Multan.
Classical music forms an important part of the cultural wealth of the Punjab. The Muslim musicians have contributed a vast number of ragas to the repertory of classical music and in compositions of classical ragas, there are such masters as Malika-I-Museequi (the queen of music) Roshan Ara Begum, Ustad Amanat Ali Khan, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan and world famous Late Ustad Fateh Ali Khan. For the popular taste, however, light music particularly ghazals and folk songs which have an appeal of their own, the names of Nur Jehan and Malika Pukhraj are well-known.
Folk songs and dances reflect a wide range of moods: the rains, sowing and harvesting seasons, 'Luddi', 'Jhoomer', ' Bhangrah', and 'Sammin' depict the joy of living. Love legends of Hir Ranjha, Mirza Sahiban, Sohni Mahenwal and Saiful Maluk are sung in different styles. Some of the folk singers have performed in many parts of the world and received acclaim and appreciation. Among the Punjab poets, the names of Sultan Bahu, Bulleh Shah and Mian Mohammad from yesteryears and folk singers like Sain Marna and Tufail Niazi are well-known.
Arts and Crafts
Cultural Heritage
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